Klopp: "We don't fear Madrid, but we respect them a lot"

"We're going into the game in a confident mood after our performance against Manchester City and we hope we'll be able to put in a good display."

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE | BORUSSIA DORTMUND V REAL MADRID

23/10/2012

Borussia Dortmund coach Jürgen Klopp spoke to the press ahead of his side's Champions League tie with Real Madrid on Wednesday.

What's the situation with your three injured players?

The situation is different for each player. [Marcel] Schmelzer is recovering well, and so is [Mario] Gotze but [Ilkay] Gundogan has only been able to train with our fitness coach. I still don't know which players will be in the starting line-up and who'll be on the bench, but I can say that Schmelzer and Götze will be in the squad.

How important are Mats Hummels and Neven Subotic to Borussia's philosophy?

They are two crucial players who are vital to the squad. They are both very modern centre-backs, who do a great job defensively and are very technical. They have an excellent vision of play and they are very strong in the air. They are the ones that start our attacks.

How would you compare Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski? Who is more likely to score in the game?

Now is not the time to make comparisons. We're very happy to have Lewandowski and if people want to know more about him, I recommend they watch him during training sessions and matches.

What type of game are you expecting?

It's going to be a great challenge. Madrid have grabbed my attention in several games, especially their game against Ajax in Amsterdam [which Madrid won 4-1], where they really impressed me. They surprised me a lot during that game, especially Marcelo, who was playing with an injury. We'll have to be at our best in terms of discipline and we'll have to try and stop Xabi Alonso and especially Cristiano, Ángel Di María, Gonzalo Higuaín and Karim Benzema. We're going into the game confident after our performance against Manchester City and we hope we'll be able to put in a good display.

Do you think a club the size of Madrid will be affected by the injuries to Marcelo, Álvaro Arbeloa and Fabio Coentrao?

Perhaps it won't be easy to replace Marcelo, but Michael Essien played well [against Celta, at left-back] despite being played out of position. The other full back will be Ramos, who will be playing in his natural position, where he has played for most of his career. But I don't think the fact they have a few players injured will be a big advantage for us.

Do you fear Madrid due to their ability to break up the play or due to their decisiveness in front of goal?

I would never use the word fear, but we have a lot of respect for Madrid. Their key player is Alonso, because he is the one who starts the play, it's because of him that they can launch their attacks. We won't wait for them to attack us, we'll try and impose ourselves on the game. Our defence will be focusing on whoever has the ball.

Borussia Dortmund have never lost a game in the Champions League after losing in the league [they lost to Schalke on the weekend]. Will Madrid have to settle for a draw, then?

The journalist who has come up with this question is a specialist in pointless statistics.

Lukasz Piszcek has renewed his contract for another year. What did you make of that, given that Madrid were willing to pay 10 million euros for him?

I'm delighted he has renewed his contract because I get on with him very well in person and I like the way he plays. That price tag is attached by scouts and it's not the price we have said he is worth.